Andrew Wilkinson, a doctor and former minister of technology, innovation and citizens services, touts major expansion to UBC medical school as a way to solve the shortage of doctors.JONATHAN HAYWARD/ THE CANADIAN PRESS

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The B.C. Liberals want to expand the University of B.C.’s medical school from 288 graduates to 400 in only eight years.

The election campaign pledge has caught leaders of the medical school off guard, but none would comment as they have a policy of staying out of the political fray during election campaigns. The Faculty of Medicine 2016 to 2021 Strategic Plan is silent on the matter of further expansion, but makes the point that financial constraints are “limiting faculty renewal and growth.”

Dr. Dermot Kelleher, Dean of the medical school, could not comment on the Liberals’ proposal. Katie White, a spokeswoman, said: “The institution does not comment on party platforms during the election.”

UBC’s medical school is the fifth largest in North America by enrolment and the largest in Canada.

The Liberals say the expansion of the medical school could help solve the doctor shortage. The majority of new students would be placed in programs at the University of Victoria, University of Northern B.C. and UBC Okanagan.

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Dr. Gavin Stuart, the former Dean of the medical school who oversaw the expansion from 2003 to 2015, said that while more graduates would definitely help with the chronic shortage of primary care physicians, the proposal seems “politically driven rather than a rational idea.” Under the Liberal plan, the medical school would expand to 400 by the year 2025, a feat that seems unattainable, Stuart said.

UBC medical school, Vancouver campus

The last time a decision was made to expand the medical school was in 2001 when the Liberals took over from the NDP. Planning took three years and in 2004, 200 students were admitted, up from the 128 that had been admitted each year for about two decades. As Dr. Joanna Bates reported in the B.C. Medical Journal, the growth was gradual; in 2005, 224 students were admitted, in 2007, admissions rose to 256 and in 2016 UBC achieved its end goal of 288. (Admission numbers may not always match graduate numbers if some students do not complete the four-year MD program). All MDs pursue postgraduate specialty training which takes a minimum of two years.

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UBC has 677 full-time faculty and 6,059 clinical teachers, the majority of whom are practising doctors teaching medical students in their offices or in hospitals and other health care settings. Stuart said there are communities across B.C. where teaching doctors are feeling hard pressed to handle the existing teaching load. Some might rebel at the notion of taking on more students.

Dr. Gavin Stuart, former Dean of UBC faculty of medicine

“I think when 2020 rolls around, there will be a need to take a deep breath and reflect on the future,” Stuart said.

Liberal MLA Andrew Wilkinson, a medical doctor, was the politician who responded to requests for more information about the party’s pledge.

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Dr. David Kim, president of Resident Doctors of B.C., said his association welcomes any lift in funding and commitment to medical education and health care in general. But he cautions that increasing the program can’t be done in a bubble; there are numerous repercussions such as the availability of residency positions. Some fully trained specialists are even unemployed.

According to U.S. News and World Report, the average acceptance rate for 118 top ranked American medical schools was 5.8 per cent last year. And among the 10 medical schools with the fiercest competition, the admittance rate was less than three per cent.

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